Social Networking
'Social Networking' Social Networking is an expanded web application that allows collaboration to take place.' '''According to Facer and Selwyn (2010) social networking (SN) sites “rely on the Internet to facilitate social interactions, self-presentation, public performance, social capital management, social monitoring, and the production, maintenance and furthering of social ties”. Green and Hannon (2007) suggest that social networking is a part of Web 2.0 that provides for users to create links between their online presence, such as a webpage, by either joining online groups or by creating direct links to other users through lists of friends or contacts. The different social networking sites used by individuals for interacting, engaged in common interest and showcasing creativity. This expanded web application which allows collaboration to take place also provides sharing of ideas through images, files, video link, blogs and call conferencing. When one choose to used a social networking site, its good practice to browse other sites in order to see what can be expected from different designs; also it is important to set the ‘network privacy’ level at either public or private after joining. 'Social networking and learning' The use of social networking can also be use to assist learning task where sites should be developed to facilitate the achievement of the curriculum outcomes, as benefits can be derive from collaborative learning, such as deeper understanding of the concepts and issues of learning task. New ideas are share, experiences, evaluating ideas and concepts in creating new ideas and ways of working. Teachers can use a number of instructional strategies that are influenced by learning theories in designing appropriate learning tasks that will result in the benefits of students to share and make a learning community. 'Why I choose the topic to speak about its content' Social networking is an ever growing means of communicating that is used for a number of purposes Shah (2010) “found that social net working sites allowed various levels of stakeholders to engage in collaborative activities that mobilised their collective expertise, experience and subjective analytic skills that they possess”. The Internet, social media, and all of the related technology brings many wonderful benefits but has a dark side, as unhealthy behavior can come about often associated with addiction. Persistent exposure to technology-related cues can cause people to get caught in a vicious cycle of dopamine stimulation and deprivation. The impact that technology has on your children depends not on the technology itself, but rather on how you educate them and the experiences given as it is important we pay attention to the type and quantity of technology children are expose to. 'The safe guard of wiki''' There can be risk of unscrupulous individuals who will try to use these sites to satisfy their own depraved desires. Berger and Trexler (2010) state that some sites may require users to retain anonymity by using a screen name also evaluating of editorial policies for resolution of disputes about content, technical and managerial strategies for dealing with spam and vandalism. One must ensure mechanisms for tracking changes are functional and discussions arising from wiki content are on the page itself, or separate pages and sites has RSS feed for alert of content changes. References Berger, P. & Trexler, S. (2010). Choosing Web 2.0 tools for learning and teaching in a digital world. Santa Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited. Facer, K. and Selwyn, N. (2010). Social networking: Key messages from the research. In R. Sharpe, H. Beetham and S. de Freitas, Rethinking learning for a digital age: how learners are shaping their own experiences. (pp. 31-42). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge Green, H. & Hannon, C. (2007). Their space: Education for a digital generation Pamphlet Retrieved from http://www.demos.co.uk/files/Their%20space%20-%20web.pdf?1240939425 Shah, R. (2010). Social networking for business: Choosing the right tools and resources to fit your needs. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc.